County officials address concerns

POLSON — Lake County officials, Sheriff Jay Doyle, county attorney Mitch Young and Commissioner Bill Barron, were guest speakers at last Thursday night’s meeting of the Lake County Republican Central Committee.

They were invited to speak to the wide-ranging allegations of corruption within the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, a task that Young said was more difficult in light of the U.S. District Court lawsuit filed Feb. 21 against Doyle, and others, by several current and former deputies.

“Unfortunately, when we agreed to come speak to you, we didn’t know there was going to be a lawsuit filed, so we are going to have to be selective on what we can talk about,” he said.

The lawsuit claims unlawful conduct – including allegations of poaching and racketeering – by Sheriff Doyle, Undersheriff Dan Yonkin and deputies Michael Sargeant and Dan Duryee. Plaintiffs, former officer Terry Leonard, along with current detectives Steven Kendley and Michael Gehl, and officers Ben Woods and Levi Read, say when they brought forth evidence of wrongful activities, they were reprimanded in their employment, demoted, denied promotions and subjected to a hostile work environment. It comes on the tails of several media stories that fueled the rumor mill alleging an even broader ring of corruption spanning several sheriffs’ tenures.

Committee chairman Rick Breckenridge expressed the group’s main concern, which is the effect this “distraction” could have on the party.

“The Republican party – our brand – wants to ensure that things are handled forthrightly and that this doesn’t shed a bad light on what we’re trying to accomplish in the next election,” he said.

According to Young, most – if not all – of the claims made in the lawsuit have already been reviewed by outside agencies; the Montana Public Safety Officer Standards and Training (POST) Council, the Attorney General’s Office and Montana’s Department of Criminal Investigations (a branch within the Dept. of Justice) are all involved. While a Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks investigation, which began in 2010, has received a lot of attention in recent months, that department has yet to write a single citation.

“We’re limited on what we can do,” he said. “I’m not allowed to try these things in the court of public opinion.”

Barron, whose opponents have claimed he covered up evidence relating to a 2004 boating accident death of a deputy’s wife, said he’s not ashamed of anything that was done when he was sheriff.

“It was an unfortunate accident, that’s all,” he said. “Out of all the allegations, the only thing that has been documented is that the deputy lied about his military service. All the rest are based on rumors and hearsay, and it’s personal. This is a great agency... There are some unhappy people that are causing problems and will probably continue to do so.”

Several members of the party felt strongly that the deputy who lied about his military service should be fired, but Doyle said he was not the sheriff when that decision was made, and Young added that once administrative action is taken, you cannot re-take administrative action for the same offense.

“It’s nice that we live in an area where we can have these conversations,” one party member stated, earning nods from many others in the room.

“This sheriff’s office – and under my term – we had the people’s best interest at heart,” Barron said. “If we thought there was any poaching going on we would have dealt with it... What they’re guilty of is being out there protecting your rights and keeping you safe.”

Young added the DCI’s investigation should be wrapping up soon and he expects its findings will be made public within the month.